Artistic License
by TheGreatMatsutzu
Summary: DekaRanger- An old friend of Doggie Kruger's visits DekaBase, bringing with him a mysterious new case. Can he solve it while he gets flustered as his friend embarasses him recounting to Jasmine stories of their youth? Also Doggie/Jasmine friendship.
1. Chapter 1

--

Admittedly, I've had the idea for this fic for a long, long time. I had written quite a bit of it months ago, but have only recently come back to it. After some re-editing, I'm finally ready to start posting it. This will be at least three chapters, I'm assuming.

--

**Artistic License**

Chapter 1

"Have you seen Boss?"

Swan turned her swivel chair around to see Jasmine standing at the doorway to the Maintenance Room. She placed down her teacup on top of the newspaper that was sitting on the console in front of her. Jasmine could make out the headline from where she stood-- something about some jewel robberies that had been plaguing the city.

"I saw him earlier this morning," Swan said, looking up to meet the younger woman's eyes. "I think he said something about heading to the lobby."

"Thanks, Swan-san." She smiled, quickly turned and left Swan's workplace.

Jasmine hurried toward the direction of the lobby of the DekaBase. SPD officers were running around every which way throughout the corridors, almost as if in a state of confusion. It gave the attractive young officer a claustrophobic feeling. Yes, things were incredibly hectic these days. Lately, there had been a large re-increase in crime, especially among the Seijiin population. Everyone was feeling the stress. In fact, Jasmine hadn't seen many of her friends in days; everyone was so busy working on different cases. Jasmine and Kruger were supposed to be working on paperwork that morning, but he still hadn't shown up. Thus, the yellow-uniformed deka had decided to go looking for him.

She swiftly turned the corner and entered the lobby area of the DekaBase. This is where people were checked in, inspected for weapons and given ID before entering. Jasmine squinted--it looked like Doggie was at the receptionist's desk, wearing a black tank-top and a pair of blue jeans. _That's odd he's so dressed-down,_ Jasmine thought. She squinted yet again. Was the lighting in the room bad? It looked like his fur was a violet color rather than its normal blue.

"I'll inform him that you've come shortly," The receptionist said, not even looking up from his desk.

Jasmine smiled and walked up behind the tall canine humanoid, then reached up and put her hands on his broad shoulders.

"Boss," Jasmine laughed. "What are you doing out here? I thought we were going to get those papers signed and filed."

The Anubinoid's head quickly turned to face Jasmine. The ESPer let out a gasp of startled surprise.

The face was not of Doggie Kruger. For one, he was wearing an eye patch across his left eye; the one uncovered was a gold-brown color. His fur was a lot more ruffled and scraggly-looking than Kruger's. His hot breath smelled of tobacco smoke, a long tooth was exposed on the right side of his mouth. Finally, instead of two triangular black spots on the forehead, he had two circular ones. Upon closer inspection, Jasmine realized it was no trick of the light--his fur was violet, not blue.

"Hey," The Anubinoid's voice boomed in amusement, in a husky tone very unlike Kruger's. "I think you've mistaken me for someone else."

--

Kruger walked into the lobby and looked around. Jasmine wasn't anywhere to be seen. Swan had mentioned that she had headed toward the lobby, so he quickly made his way to the area hoping to catch up with her. He had to meet Sen and Umeko earlier at their stakeout, which is why he had missed the time they were supposed to meet to work on paperwork. After a few moments, he decided to ask the receptionist.

"Oh yes, sir, she was here." He replied. "She left to one of the guest rooms, with a visitor who came here to see you."

"To see me?" Kruger asked, his brows going up in surprise. "Name please."

"Yes sir," The receptionist said, quickly fumbling for his clipboard. "Let's see... the name was Fang Halley."

"Halley?!" Kruger was taken aback. _I haven't seen Halley in over 7 years, back on Anubis._

Kruger noticed the receptionist adjust his large-rimmed glasses as he stared back at him.

"Uh...Thanks," Kruger said. "What room was he assigned?"

"Room Twelve, sir."

Kruger nodded, and then started down the hall.

_'Halley, my best friend from my youth,_' Kruger thought. '_We were inseparable. Our parents had been friends even before we were born, so I suppose it was only natural... And we only got closer after...No I don't want to think about that time again, it's what caused me to want to be a Space Policeman in the first place. Well, we both took the entrance exam and I passed with flying colors. Halley, well, he was never much into learning and tests. Last I heard, he had become a Space Transporter...'_

Kruger's thought process was broken as he stopped outside the door to Guest Room Twelve. He input the code and opened the door.

"And then," Halley was laughing. His back turned from Kruger and he was sitting in a chair at a table. Jasmine was facing him at the other side. "I bust through the door and there Krug was, bare-ass naked."

Kruger's mouth dropped open in shock. Jasmine's face was beat red in embarrassment. Her brown eyes diverted from Halley to the door.

"Oh, Boss," Jasmine said in surprise when she noticed him. "When... when did you get here?"

"Good 'ol Dog!," Halley got up from the chair and turned to face his old friend. He gave Kruger a one-armed bear hug. Halley was taller than Kruger by about an inch. "Krug, how the hell have ya been?"

"H-Halley," Kruger stammered, his face flushed red under his fur. "Did you just tell Jasmine the story of that stupid suit you tricked me into wearing, the one that completely disintegrated about an hour after I put it on?"

"With the matching underwear, yeah, why?" Halley laughed. "Oh yeah, you were pretty pissed about it back then. I remember you got me back by--"

Kruger grunted, clearly trying to change the subject. "I see you haven't changed much, Hal." Kruger smiled in spite of himself. Though he could be obnoxious, Halley was always a fun guy to be around. "I see you've met one of my officers, Jasmine."

"Oh yeah, real affectionate that one," Halley said. "Practically gave me a big 'ol hug when I got here. I think she thought I was you I recon. Smells like lavender.."

Jasmine looked down, embarrassment showing on her face. "Boss, I..." he began.

"Don't mention it," said Kruger, sitting down next to her. He looked up at Halley. "So what're you doing in these parts? Still transporting from Anubis to other planets?"

"You bet," Halley said, turning his chair around and sitting on it, resting his large and strong forearms on the back of the chair. "Always been a lot of money in it. I've been bringing some rare Anubian art to a private Gallery here lately."

"Oh, that's right." Jasmine added. "A friend of mine had visited there last week. They've been showcasing Anubian art at the Metropolitan Gallery in the past month. I hear it's really beautiful."

"So yeah, now ya know what I'm up to," Halley said. "That, and I've got a lady here on Earth. She takes a lot of my free energies if ya know what I mean."

Jasmine turned away embarrassed once again. Kruger smiled.

"Thinking about settling down and getting married this time, Halley?"

"Ya kidding?" Halley smiled. "You know that's not my style. Plus she's an artist and doesn't believe in marriage. Isn't that perfect?"

"Nope, you really haven't changed at all." Kruger observed.

Halley laughed, but then got rather quiet. His look suddenly changed to a serious expression.

"Krug, I know you're the chief of police here." Halley began. "So, I really didn't know where else to turn..."

"Fang...er, I mean, Halley-san, are you having some kind of trouble?" Jasmine asked, her brow furrowing under her dark hair.

"I'm not sure," Halley answered. "How much do you know about weight distribution in packages?"

"Not much," Kruger responded. "I assume that since you handle large items daily that you're more knowledgeable in that area than I."

"Well, it's just the weirdest thing," Halley began. "When I dropped off some Anubian pottery last month, it felt liked it weighed maybe about 15 pounds in the shipping case. No more, no less. However, when I picked it up the other day after they were done with it, it felt like it weighed about 50."

Jasmine and Kruger both looked at each other, confused. "What are you saying, Halley?" Kruger asked. "Are you saying that the same exact case, with the same exact items weighed more?"

"That's exactly what I'm saying," Halley nodded.

"Maybe something additional was in there?" Jasmine asked.

"That's what I was afraid of," Halley turned to Jasmine. He reached into his shirt pocket and pulled out a cigarette. "Do you mind?"

Jasmine nodded that she did not, but then Kruger interrupted his old companion.

"Sorry, we have a no smoking rule within DekaBase. You were saying?"

"Oh, my apologies," Halley stumbled and put the cigarette back into his pocket. "Well, yeah that's what I was thinkin'. I was worried maybe someone was trying to smuggle drugs in there. Wouldn't be the first time someone tried that on me. But I catch it every time. However, I opened the case and inspected the pots. There was nothing inside of it."

"Weird," Jasmine agreed.

"My gal thinks I'm just getting old," Halley laughed. "But I wondered if they could be counterfeit."

"That's a possibility," Jasmine agreed. "Cheaper materials always weigh more, so forgeries are often heavier than the genuine items."

"I asked an expert back on Anubis," Halley continued. "You know, once I got back. The guy at the museum looked at the stuff, then back at me like I was nuts. Said it was gen-u-ine Rex Galleio. Could tell by the engravings or something."

"So, what do you want us to do?" Kruger asked.

"Maybe poke around the museum," Halley said. "Talk to that chick, what's her name.. oh Stevenson..." Halley enunciated her name in a mocking way. "Mel Stevenson, the lady who owns the gallery, American or British by the sounds of it. She's my boss, but she's always late on paying me. I mean really late. Forgets a man's gotta support himself I think. She's always hanging with that crummy lawyer, Rhodes and that fatty businessman Hiroshi Chen. She's a slut."

"Halley-san!" Jasmine shouted out, aghast.

"Hey, those are Yuri's words, not mine." Halley laughed. " Oh, Yuri's my girl."

"So you're saying," Kruger interjected. "You want us to poke around and bother these people just because one of your packages got heavier?"

"Yeah, send some guys or something," Halley said distractedly. "See if it makes that bimbo get nervous."

"Halley, understand that this is a busy time at SPD," Kruger began. "Almost all of our people are on major assignments."

"Krug, I really wouldn't ask this if I wasn't suspicious something's up," Halley said. "At one time you said we have the same instincts, I just couldn't cut the learnin' part. Think of this as a personal favor."

Kruger growled deep and his throat and said nothing. Jasmine looked over at her boss with concern. Doggie felt Jasmine's brown eyes watching him, and knew that she sensed it--the years of friendship between him and Halley that made it difficult to say no, the secrets that were shared between them, the good times and the bad...

"Alright," Kruger said finally.

"Sweet," Halley grinned. He then got up and placed his chair by Jasmine. He sat back down and put his arm around her. "While you're doing that I'll stay here and chat with your cute little friend more. I'm sure she'd love to hear a lot more stories of our wild and crazy school days, wouldn't you cutie?"

"Um..." By Jasmine's expression, Kruger could tell she was pretty uncomfortable. Kruger felt a little annoyed, it was like Halley wasn't letting Jasmine's case of mistaken identity drop--and was continuing to tease her with how close they were...Kruger shook his head. _Why must I always let Halley push my buttons_? He thought. _And why is it always so hard to stay mad at him for it?_

"As I said, we're short-staffed and I could use Jasmine's assistance on this," Kruger said triumphantly, feeling like he got Halley back. "Jasmine is an ESPer and her insight would be quite valuable."

Jasmine looked back at Halley during this and smiled at him nervously, almost as if a big secret of her's had been let out.

"Heh," Halley laughed. "You've won this round Doggie Kruger, but there'll be other chances to let Marika-chan know what makes you tick."

Halley got up and walked to the door.

"I'm going out, I need a smoke," he muttered.

Kruger smiled. That was as close to a thanks as he was going to get from Fang Halley.

--

Kruger and Jasmine were in one of the SPD Deka Machine vehicles. Kruger was focusing on the road ahead, deep in thought. What would he say once he got to the Gallery? Come flat out and say the guy handling their shipments thinks they're stealing, then counterfeiting, items? No, that could cost Halley his job...

"Your friend," Jasmine said suddenly, turning away from the passenger side window. "He seems...nice."

Kruger grunted and didn't say anything.

"I'm sorry about that story he was telling me. I tried to stop him numerous times, but he just keep going."

"Don't worry about it, Halley's like that. A real jerk."

"But yet we're going to the gallery.." Jasmine said pointedly.

"It's complicated," Kruger responded, still keeping his eyes on the road. "It's really hard to explain, I guess it's because we go so far back. I'd bet there's nothing Halley doesn't know about me up to a certain point."

"I'm kind of jealous," Jasmine said inadvertently.

Kruger's eyes darted to where Jasmine was sitting. She quickly looked away, a small amount of red flushed on her face. Kruger wasn't about to mention that he too felt a little bit jealous of all the attention Halley was shoving on Jasmine--he knew that his old friend was mostly doing it to jab at him in the first place. And Kruger couldn't lie to himself, it was bothering him. Jasmine was almost like a daughter to him, after all.

"Forget it, I'm sorry." Jasmine said.

"Don't be," Kruger said, watching the road once more. "I guess I don't really like to talk about the past all that much."

"I understand," Jasmine said. "I just want you to know I'm here for you, like you've been for me I guess."

Kruger smiled. "Of course."

"He's really different from you," Jasmine thought out loud. "Perhaps that's why you were such good friends."

"We're here," Kruger interrupted, pulling up to the Metropolitan Gallery. "Unfortunately, right now we've got a red light on ESPer investigations, since this isn't exactly in the S.P.D.'s jurisdiction. So, just follow my lead, keep a sharp eye out and don't disagree with anything I say. Heck, I'm worried I'm a little rusty, it's been some time since I've done this part of a Deka's job."

Jasmine nodded and straightened the jacket of her uniform. Kruger parked the car and pocketed his license, which had been sitting on the dashboard.

--

"Counterfeiting? Has someone accused us of that?"

Melanie (or rather, Mel as she liked to be called.) Stevenson was a very European-looking blonde woman who had her hair in a bun. She had introduced herself as the gallery's owner as soon as Kruger and Jasmine had walked in. She had no British accent, so Kruger assumed she must be American. She had a harshness about her that seemed to be balanced with a flirtatious side. With many of the comments she made, it was as if she was trying to be overly sensual. Kruger could tell from the first handshake that Jasmine seemed not to like her very much.

"I wouldn't say accused," Kruger said. " I would merely say some have shown... concerns."

"And you're from Anubis' Space Police?" She asked.

"No ma'am. As I've said before I'm from Earth's Branch." Kruger reiterated.

"Tell Anubis they have no reason to worry," Miss Stevenson said harshly. "They will be getting the genuine articles back. Rex Galleio was a fabulous Anubian artist, whose pottery work has captivated millions across the universe. We respect that and take extra care with it. Now, unless you have a cute little... what do you call them? Oh, _warrant _or something, I suggest you leave."

"Thank you for your time, Ma'am." Kruger said. He turned to Jasmine and began to exit the building. Miss Stevenson sat down at her desk and began to dial her phone.

--

"That went as well as expected," Kruger said, opening his car door. As soon as he had sat at the driver's seat he turned to Jasmine.

"Well, notice anything interesting?"

"Only a bit," Jasmine began. "First of which she was heavily flirting with you when we first arrived, and never dropped the act the whole time, even when she got ticked off. Her mannerisms were very coquettish. I'm not one to start rumors about people, but after meeting her I wouldn't be surprised if Halley-san's comment about her had a small ring of truth about it."

Kruger couldn't help but smile at Jasmine's dead-on observation.

"When you brought up the idea of counterfeiting, her face twitched for a moment," Jasmine replied. "It was practically prominent in her left eyelid. She then tried to turn the questions around, almost like she was the one asking them. This is a tactic to avoid answering anything that could be incriminating, which only occurs when the person being questioned is in a familiar place. It would never work in an interrogation room. Anyway, her eyes kept glancing at the phone after you brought up the notion. I would say she's on the phone right now, probably saying something like 'we've got a problem'."

Kruger nodded, listening intently. He turned toward the Gallery and could see Stevenson in her office through the glass window. She was indeed on the phone.

"Not bad," Kruger mused. "Particularly because you're a little hindered without using your powers."

"What about you, Boss?" The beautiful ESPer inquired. "Notice anything strange?"

Doggie nodded. "As a matter of fact, yes. She wiped her hands once on her skirt when she told me to tell Anubis not to worry. Her hands were perspiring, usually a telltale sign of lying--or at least someone trying to hide something. Her voice cracked slightly when she said 'cute little warrant', halfway through the word little. It was like she was afraid there would be, and she bit her lower lip for approximately half a second when she finished speaking, also a sign of nervousness."

"Amazing observations, Boss," Jasmine smiled. "What do you think?"

"None of the things we noticed today could really prove anything," Kruger said with a shrug.

"True," Jasmine responded. "But I agree with Halley-san, something strange is going on. Either she is involved in something potentially illegal, or she is aware of it. The fact that she was looking at the phone means she wanted someone to know about your conversation. But the question is why?"

Kruger thought for a minute taking it all in.

"I wish we could use those powers of yours," Kruger said. "We would've known immediately. Also, it's a shame that everyone else is so busy with other assignments. If our suspicions are correct, this could become an inter-planetary incident."

"I agree," Jasmine said. "Luckily, it's well in the Space Police jurisdiction, since Planet Anubis is involved. I say we call up Chief Numa-O and get that warrant. Halley's testimony might be enough to get the ball rolling. Then I can attempt it."

"In the meantime," Kruger began. "I've got an idea, we'll call in the pottery that was returned. Maybe Swan can inspect it and see if it's the real deal."

"Good idea, Boss," Jasmine smiled. "Maybe there's something simple they missed like..."

"The make-up of the item." Kruger finished her sentence. "The museum owner recognized it as the work of Rex Galleio...but what about the clay used in it? It could just be it's only found on Earth. The soil on Anubis is very different than that of Earth."

"That would be really stupid of them though." Jasmine said pointedly.

Kruger nodded and put on his sunglasses.

"Often the criminal element is," He grinned.

Kruger started up the engine of the Machine Doberman and pulled out of the parking lot of the art gallery. Stevenson looked outside as he did so. She was still on the phone, a peculiar look on her face.


	2. Chapter 2

--

_AN: I decided to go a little shorter with this chapter for about two reasons. The first being for some build-up of suspense for later chapters, and the second being that Chapter 1 seemed rather long when I reviewed it myself later on site._

_Also, apologies for some mistakes in the previous chapter (now fixed). Jasmine got referred to by male monikers twice that I missed in both of my proofreads. I think those got through because I was mixing up some of her parts with Halley's in my head when I checked for errors. :blush:_

--

"What do you mean?"

Doggie Kruger looked up at the monitor and grit his teeth, irate with the museum curator on Planet Anubis. There he was, over the planetary communication channels, telling him that they could not send any of the pieces of pottery to DekaBase.

"I told you," The aged Anubian museum curator said, sounding somewhat flustered. "I do not want to risk sending these valuable pieces to Earth once again. They are fragile and could be easily damaged."

Sitting in his chair, Kruger looked to his right at Jasmine, then to his left at Swan. They both nodded, stern looks etched on both of their faces. The Earth branch's chief looked back up to the Anubian on the monitor, trying to clear his face of any emotion... but failed miserably at hiding his annoyance.

"Copernicus-san, I do not think you are in a position to refuse," Kruger growled. "Besides, you didn't seem to have a problem shipping them out a week ago."

"They're... They're no longer here..." The Anubian said, almost sounding as if he were trapped.

"I do not understand," Kruger's voice was growing more and more irritated. If there was anything he hated the most about his job, it was when others gave him the run-around. "First you say you don't want to send them again for fear of breakage, now you say they're gone."

"Our signal's breaking up..." Copernicus, the Anubian curator, said, nervousness apparent in his tone of voice. "I..."

Static abruptly replaced the Anubian's face on the view screen. Kruger could hardly say he was surprised.

"He cut off communication," Swan observed. "Highly suspicious, wouldn't you say?"

Jasmine and Kruger both nodded in agreement.

"Do you think he's in on whatever is going on?" Jasmine asked, her gloved hand reaching up to her chin.

"Definitely," Kruger stated. "Something is up, Halley was right."

At that, he swung his chair around and looked at his console. Papers from other cases were all strewn across it in a rather jumbled mess.

"Damn it," He snarled. "We're being pushed to the brink here." He pushed most of the papers off the desk and they crashed to the floor. After that outburst, he rested his chin in his hands with a loud growl.

"Another thing that concerns me," Swan began after a few moments, giving her colleague time to calm down. "I looked up information on Rex Galleio to see images of this pottery. I was hoping to compare when the pots were brought here. Doggie, do you know much about him?"

"Not really," Kruger answered her, beginning to rub his sore temples. "He really gained fame after I left Anubis. Died young, which quickly drove up the prices of his work. A master of pottery they say."

"Painting," Swan said matter-of-factly.

"Excuse me?" Kruger looked up at her and blinked.

"According to the information I found, Rex Galleio was a painter--not a potter." She explained. "That tidbit was very hard for me to come up with-- there's precious few information available on Earth."

"I don't understand..." Jasmine was flustered. "Halley-san brought clay pots to Earth, not paintings. Then they were heavier..."

Kruger looked down at his desk, as he attempted to make sense of this himself. What did this new revelation mean? Why on Earth did the Metropolitan Gallery have clay pots in their 'Works of Rex Galleio' exhibit if he had been a painter, not a potter? Suddenly, a newspaper that was still on his console caught his eye. '_Jewel thieves still have not been caught, Gems not recovered--Metropolitan Police still investigating.'_

"Another odd thing," Swan began, breaking Kruger's thought process. "Isn't it odd that Halley-san brings about ten or so pots into the exhibit, then the next week or so takes them back--although they weigh heavier-- and then brings ten more to show in the exhibit? Why recycle them so much? That alone seems strange, wouldn't you say?"

Kruger's reddish-brown eyes grew wide in surprise as the truth suddenly hit him. Missing jewels... pots mysteriously growing heavier... and now this. Could it be?

"They're fakes all around!" He shouted. He rose from his desk and paced around, both women in the room quickly moving aside together, out of his way. "Halley's first suspicion was right--They're using the pots to smuggle something from Earth to Anubis!"

"Now I don't understand," Swan said, her voice displaying the uncertainty of her thoughts. Next to her, Jasmine looked equally confused.

"Swan-san's right, Boss," Jasmine's slender eyebrows rose. "If that's true, what accounts for Halley-san's employment?"

"They're using him as an alibi," Kruger explained. "To make sure not to draw suspicion. It's ingenious. First, on Earth they claim there's a Galleio Works exhibit... and do not allow photography. My guess is this--They make new pots with something valuable baked inside the clay and ship those back. That accounts for the weight difference. Then they destroy the ones they have, claim they've sent those ones back and shift to new different works under the pretence that people will see more of Galleio's work. Yet, it's a ploy and they're smuggling something."

"That somewhat makes sense, I suppose," Jasmine ran a hand through her hair, then crossed her arms. "Halley-san would not find anything in the pots if it's baked in them. And if he grew suspicious, they were sure he wouldn't intentionally break one of them to check it."

"... Because he would be penalized for breaking the merchandise he was hired to ship," Swan thought out loud.

"And the casual observer would not know the difference either," Kruger agreed. "I also bet on Anubis, Copernicus ensures no one sees what's in the boxes being shipped out. Or, I bet they have no clue overall about which artist's work it is, except its art for display on Earth."

"But what could be within the pots themselves?" Swan questioned.

"Take a look at this," Kruger handed her the newspaper. "Swan, do you know of any leads in the stolen jewels case?"

"None, why?"

"My intuition tells me that's what's going on. Jasmine, we're heading to Anubis. I want to talk to Copernicus. _In person_."

_--_

Kruger and Jasmine quickly walked to the hanger of the DekaBase, preparing to go to Anubis. It was a difficult task, as the hallways of DekaBase were still very packed with officers and civilians, due to the increase of cases that was still plaguing the base. To Doggie, it seemed like an eternity before they were able to break through the crowd and get to where their ship was waiting to leave. As they were finally boarding the craft however, a familiar voice rang out, stopping the two before they could fully board.

"Hey, Krug, Marika-chan!"

They both turned to see Fang Halley, looking a little more disheveled and sloppy than the last time they met, if that was even possible. He ran toward to where they were standing outside the spacecraft.

"Good, I caught you guys," Halley gasped out as he stopped in front of them.

"Halley," Kruger shook his head. "You look terrible."

"Yeah, sorry 'bout that." He looked slightly embarrassed. "Yuri ran out on me yesterday morning. Left me a 'Dear John' letter. I can't believe she didn't force me to leave since she owns that flat."

Jasmine looked confused and wanted to say something further on the matter, but Kruger interrupted, thinking it was time for Halley to get to the point.

"We're on our way to Anubis," Kruger broke in, with just a touch of annoyance. "I'm sorry to hear about your girlfriend leaving you, but could you get to why you're delaying us?"

"Business as usual, eh, Krug?" Halley laughed-- apparently women left him all the time, as he seemed so used to it. "I was heading there myself. I've got another suddenly heavier shipment I'm returning. The pretty little lady I met in your office said you wanted to check it out, so I caught you. Hey, she's just as cute as you are, Marika-chan. You surround yourself with some nice-looking people Krug."

Kruger growled, annoyed. He was actually rather hoping Halley wouldn't have the opportunity to meet Swan. It was bad enough he had been showing so much attention toward Jasmine--now Halley would certainly be doubly annoying... Doggie snapped his mind out of it. If Halley had the most recent pots, this could make things easier... in a couple different ways.

"Another shipment..." Kruger said thoughtfully, hoping he was disguising the fact that he was annoyed, while at the same time feeling guilty about letting it distract him from his job.

"This is great, Halley-san!" Jasmine almost shouted. "That means we can look at them before we go talk to that suspicious curator on Planet Anubis."

"They're in my ship out back," Halley smiled. "C'mon, follow me."

Halley put his arm around Jasmine's shoulders and quickly walked away, pulling her along. Kruger rolled his eyes and followed them in stride.

--

Halley opened the door to his spacecraft and Kruger and Jasmine followed him into it. It was a true testament to how Halley lived--it was cluttered with garbage, used cigarettes overflowed onto the floor from numerous ash trays. Kruger took note at the sound of metal under their feet as they walked. The ship seemed to make a creaking sound... obviously it was old and had seen better days. The lighting of the ship could have certainly been better. Kruger swore that the lights seemed to blink, and they made a rather obnoxious humming sound. He looked over at Jasmine, who seemed unfazed by it. Perhaps her hearing wasn't as sensitive as his was, and she didn't notice. He couldn't help but wonder how in the universe Halley wasn't bothered by the sound though.

Perhaps he was used to it.

The sound of the cargo bay doors opening caught Kruger's attention, turning it away from the dismal scenery of his friend's transport ship. Halley had opened the door to the cargo bay and walked into it, his companions quickly following-- Jasmine first, Kruger after. Finally, he approached a large crate. Picking up a crowbar, the violet furred Anubian pointed toward it with the object.

"Here we are," Halley grinned.

He repositioned the crowbar with both hands and opened the case with an ease that displayed how often Halley had done this in the past. Kruger peered within it to see ten vases lined up, each one packed in with tissue paper. The chief reached in and picked up one of the pots and inspected it. It had intricate designs and etchings, and had a somewhat aged look... but, in a way, that look almost seemed... artificial.

"Looks to have been done by an artist," Kruger mused, turning the vase around in the dim light from overhead. "But certainly not Galleio."

Kruger turned to Jasmine, who was standing to his left.

"Let's give it a try," Kruger said. "I'll take responsibility."

She nodded, and slowly removed the black glove of her left hand. Kruger handed her the vase, and she slowly touched it with her bare hand. Her eyes closed in concentration as she attempted to read the thoughts of the person that last touched it.

"Wow, I've never seen ESPer investigations before..." Halley mused. "Real interestin'."

Kruger hushed him as he turned back to Jasmine. However, her look of concentration had changed to one of pure confusion.

"Weird," She muttered, shaking her head slightly.

"What is it?" Kruger asked, eyeing the vase suspiciously.

"There's nothing here for me to read," She handed Kruger back the vase and slowly began to put back on her glove. "I don't understand. That would mean that no one touched it. "

"Could've used gloves, I guess," Halley shrugged. "I know Yuri sometimes used plastic gloves in the seldom instances she made pottery. It's rare, because she's into impressionist painting. Maybe whoever did this one did the same."

"That's kind of a rare thing to do," Kruger mused. "Most potters I've seen actually touch the clay with their bare hands."

"Yeah, Yuri had this thing 'bout not getting dirty," Halley laughed. "She sometimes used gloves when she painted too."

"Well, there's also another potential explanation... it could be too old for me to pick up any recent thought patterns," Jasmine offered, interrupting. "In that case, it would completely rule out it being a new vase."

Kruger scratched the white fur under his chin in thought. Could he be incorrect? His intuition was screaming at him, telling him that was simply not the case. If Jasmine's ESPer abilities didn't uncover anything, there was only one other recourse they could take. Thus decided, he turned to face Halley.

"Well, since Jasmine's abilities didn't find anything... Halley, do you have a screwdriver or anything like that?" He asked.

"Sure," Halley walked back to the dashboard and opened up a compartment on the passenger's side. He returned back to the cargo room and handed a flat-headed screwdriver to Kruger.

"What're you going to do?"

"S.P.D. will take full responsibility," Kruger began, handing Jasmine the vase and screwdriver. "If we damage the item and it's actually on the up and up. I suspect we won't have to worry about it though. Jasmine, the honor is yours."

"Oh, thanks a lot, Boss," Jasmine laughed, her voice brimming with sarcasm.

At that, she re-positioned the screwdriver and started chiseling a little bit in the inside of the pot. It made a low scratching noise, and Halley cringed.

"Man, that sound makes me nervous," He said. Kruger nodded in agreement.

A few minutes passed and they said nothing more. All that could be heard was the sound of the tool chipping away at the inside of the hardened clay pot, mixing with the sound of a humming that was coming from the rather faulty overhead light above the three of them.

"Ah," Jasmine said under her breath, breaking the silence.

"W-what is it?" Halley stammered. Kruger couldn't help but smile. He'd hardly ever seen Halley loose his composure, and couldn't help but relish in this rare moment.

"Found something?" Kruger said at last.

"Let me see if I can get it out," Jasmine placed her slender hand in the pot and tried to remove something with her fingers. "No... It's in there pretty well. Here, take a look."

Jasmine turned the mouth of the pot toward Kruger and Halley so they could potentially see within it.

"I see nothin'," Halley said after a moment.

"Look closely, Halley-san," Jasmine instructed.

Jasmine slowly moved the pot back and forth under the light. There was a small refraction of light--something inside was catching it and causing a glare.

"Looks like you're right, Boss," Jasmine reported. "There is a jewel of some kind embedded in this."

With that, Jasmine dropped the vase. It crashed to the floor, a shattering sound filling the whole cargo ship. The pot seemed to explode into several pieces, a brown colored mist rising from its remains. When the dust of the clay cleared, several gems could be seen in the rubble.

"Wouldn't that have been easier to do in the first place?" Halley asked.

"But where would the fun in that be?" Jasmine giggled innocently, her hand reaching up to her mouth.

Kruger stooped down to inspect the broken pieces. He carefully brushed them aside and finally picked up one of the jewels.

"A diamond," He said, standing up and holding it to the light. "Resembles one from the recent jewel thefts."

"Those... bastards," Haley snarled furiously. "They're using me to smuggle jewels to Anubis."

"Earth jewels are worth about double the amount on Anubis as they are on here," Kruger informed his friend. "I assume they're getting a fairly large sum for them."

"And it's harder to track if they're stolen on another Planet," Jasmine mused, folding her arms across her chest and shifting her weight.

"Just wait until I talk to Stevenson and her clown posse," Halley growled in fury. "They'll regret the day they messed with me."

"No," Kruger said sternly. "Do not confront them, Halley. It could be dangerous. Let me do my job."

"What are you going to do now?" Halley asked.

"Jasmine and I will go to Anubis," Kruger responded. "With some of these pots. We're going to have a little chat with Copernicus. I think he'll agree to a little sting operation in which we'll confront Stevenson and her associates. Trust me; they won't get away with this. You stay here on Earth for the time being. We'll probably have some additional questions for you, now that our suspicions have been proven."

"All right, Krug," Halley's shoulders eased as if they were losing the tension that they had built up. "Just... be careful."

"Of course," Kruger nodded.

At that, Doggie turned toward Jasmine, who was gathering some of the pots together and was placing them in a bag. Together they turned to leave Halley in his ship, the latter of whom stood staring at the shipping case the objects had been in, his expression unreadable as he pulled out a cigarette from his shirt pocket and lit it.

Something was holding Kruger back still; he really didn't know what it was. Thus, he paused for a moment and looked back toward where his old friend stood. All that could be heard in the cargo ship was the low hum that was coming from the overhead light, as Halley slowly brought the cigarette to his furred lips. He took a deep breath, and then exhaled, a cloud of smoke coming from his black nose. After observing this, Kruger shook his head and finally exited the craft, quickening his stride to reach where Jasmine stood waiting for him.

Looking back at it later, he wondered what could have been going through his friend's mind then.


	3. Chapter 3

--

_AN: We'll be seeing a little bit of action in this chapter that DekaRanger is well known for. Although not the major focus of this fic, I think the ranger henshins really should make an appearance in a multi-chaptered story. I'm not sure how good I am at fight scenes, so I hope it comes across believable._

_I've also fixed some oddities in Chapter 2 concerning semicolons. My grammar check wanted me to put them there, and in the end it seemed like a pause was not necessary. I've learned in writing that MS Word's grammar check isn't always my friend. _

_--_

Kruger opened his license and looked at the time. The trip to Anubis was taking much longer than he remembered.

Snapping it shut with a sigh, he looked over to where Jasmine was sitting next to him. She had dozed of, and was sleeping soundly, her head resting against the window. It would be rather late in their Earth time zone by now; when they had left it had been about five in the evening.

Kruger set the craft on autopilot and unbuckled his seatbelt. He turned and stretched his body back behind the seat and pulled out a blanket from the back. With a swift motion, he laid it over his companion's body. Jasmine shuffled a bit; a soft sound came from her lips, but she did not awaken. Kruger sat back down in the cruiser's seat and shifted the autopilot back to manual control. With one hand on the steering wheel, and one around Jasmine's shoulder (she had again shifted weight and was now leaning against him) Kruger tried to focus on the trip ahead.

_'Halley makes this trip often twice a week,' _Kruger thought to himself. '_It's pretty amazing, the dedication he has for his job.'_

Kruger looked out to the dark vastness of space that was only interrupted by the light emanating forth from a few stars. He realized that Halley often made this voyage alone. He looked back at Jasmine, whose face looked peaceful as she slept against him. Kruger brushed some of her dark brown hair out of her face and looked back out the windshield to the space in front of them.

_'It has to be a rather lonely way of life,'_ Kruger thought.

Eventually, a violet-ish globe appeared in the far distance--It was Planet Anubis. It had been a long time since he had last been there, over ten years. Something akin to home-sickness welled up in Doggie's heart then... and another more somber feeling. He shook it off. This was certainly no pleasure cruise; definitely not the time for him to be reliving old memories, pleasant or painful. As they approached the planet closer, Kruger opened his license, dialing the number of Anubis' S.P.D. branch.

"This is Chief Doggie Kruger of S.P.D. Earth Branch," Doggie stated once his transmission was received. "I am closing in on the planet now. Please lower the force field and let us through."

"Right away, sir." Came the reply over the airwaves.

--

Kruger stepped out of the space craft, followed by Jasmine. She was attempting to manage her hair, which had become tussled from her unplanned nap on the trip. It would not take them too much walking time before they would outside of the Anubian Art Gallery; it was an easy walking distance from the Space Police branch where they had parked their vessel. It was eerily quiet and still that evening... in fact, even the normal nighttime sounds, such as incects chirping, were not audible. All that could be heard was the sound of their footsteps as they walked.

Suddenly, the Anubian Art Gallery loomed into view. The building had been designed to come across rather ornate, and seemed to be made of gray stone. Large gargoyle statues, with somewhat canine-esque features, sat perched atop of each corner of the roof, glaring down at them with their empty stone eye sockets. It had a rather gothic character, adding a strange foreboding air to the surrounding environment. Doggie shook his head of those thoughts and opened his Master License to call the number of the gallery. He stood there for a few minutes, waiting...

"No one's answering," He finally growled, turning to his ESPer companion and snapping it shut.

They slowly walked up to the door of the building. Jasmine reached out and pulled the door handle... and the glass entryway easily came open.

"He didn't lock the building though," Jasmine observed, one eyebrow raising in confusion. "Odd."

Kruger walked past her into the building and Jasmine slowly followed. The lights were still on, yet no one seemed to be around.

"Do you think he knew we were coming, Boss?" Jasmine asked. She adjusted the bag she was carrying which contained the evidence they planned to confront Copernicus with.

"But how could--" Kruger's reply was harshly interrupted by a loud shot that seemed to cut through the stillness of the air like a knife.

"What was that?!" Jasmine asked, a slight amount of fear showing in her voice.

Kruger looked around, his sensitive ears twitching slightly. His eyes then focused ahead of where they stood. "It came from that direction--toward the curator's office. Let's move!"

Doggie took off in a run, with Jasmine close behind. Suddenly, the sound of multiple footsteps filled his ears. With amazing fast speed, a swarm of Anaroids had suddenly appeared from the corridor directly in front of them.

"Mecha-Human's?!" Jasmine cried out. The bag of evidence hit the ground with a crash.

One of the Anaroids lunged at Jasmine before Kruger could make a move. However, there was a flash of light and suddenly DekaYellow leapt out toward the android. With lightening fast speed, she struck it twice with her D-Stick and followed it up with two kicks to its chest. Jasmine kicked it one final time, flipping backward as the Anaroid fell back, hit the ground and exploded. She landed behind Kruger. They stood back to back as the remaining Mecha-Humans swiftly surrounded them in a circle formation.

"Nice job," Kruger responded, smiling at his pupil's fast reaction time.

"I've learned from the best," Jasmine said from behind her yellow helmet.

Another Anaroid lurched forward, and Kruger removed a blaster from the inside of his jacket. After several shots to the head, it fell and exploded.

"Boss, they're trying to delay us," Jasmine observed. "That's why they're attacking one at a time."

"Let's end this now then," Kruger replaced his blaster back into his chief's uniform and pulled out his license.

"EMERGENCY!! DEKAMASTER!!"

With a great flash, DekaMetal had completely covered Kruger's body, and he had transformed into the powerful DekaMaster.

"Stay close to me," Kruger said through his helmet to DekaYellow behind him. "We'll try to take them out in a couple blows."

Jasmine nodded. "I'll back you up, Boss."

Kruger nodded in return and looked around himself on either side to see the enemy deftly advancing.

"VEGA SLASH!!" He shouted. He swung D-Sword Vega in a semi-circle, and all of the Mecha-Humans on both sides and the front of him were wiped out in a large explosion.

Behind his back, the DekaMaster could hear the sounds of Jasmine struggling to keep the remaining Mecha-humans from the back from attacking them. He turned to see her yellow boot hit solidly against one's metal-plated head. It hit the ground and then scurried back up and lurched forward. As it went for its second attack, Kruger swung D-Sword Vega around and thrust it into the Anaroid's chest, impaling it. He pulled out the weapon and the Mecha-Human fell forward, bursting into flames on the ground.

"Thanks Boss," Jasmine said through her helmet breathlessly. "I think there's four more left. I'll--"

Suddenly laser blasts surrounded them on all sides. Jasmine and Kruger cried out as they hit the ground. Unfortunately, it knocked Jasmine out of her transformation; her face showing of surprise. They looked up to the stairs to see an orange spiky-headed mecha-human jump off the top of the staircase and land in front of them. The four remaining Anaroids flanked it on both sides.

"An Igaroid," Jasmine looked up, her lengthy dark hair in her face. "That might've caused the shot we heard."

DekaMaster struggled to get back up to his feet and emitted a low, fierce growl. "There's no way we're losing to these remnants of Abrera's legacy!"

Kruger growled through his helmet once again as he rushed forward to attack the Igaroid. It fired a few shots that he avoided and deflected easily. He quickly glanced back to see the remaining Anaroids were trying to surround the un-morphed Jasmine, who at the moment seemed to be defending herself quite well despite loosing her DekaYellow henshin.

Deftly turning his helmet to face the Igaroid, Kruger took notice at the slow movements it was making with its weapon. He had seen that movement about a hundred times now-- it was obviously attempting to go into its deadly Cross Burst technique. He'd give it no such chance. Quickly speeding up, he quickly parried to the android's left, to the side where it left itself most vulnerable. Then, he dashed forward, preparing for a quick finish.

"VEGA SLASH!" Kruger yelled once again, swiping D-Sword Vega in front of him in a quick motion, cutting the Igaroid straight through the chest. It broke in two and its pieces fell to the ground, exploding.

"Got you," Kruger said, raising his gloved hand and turning it into a thumbs down position.

Hearing the sound of laser fire, Kruger turned back to where Jasmine was still fighting. The first thing he saw one of the Mecha-Humans falling to the ground and exploding. However, another Anaroid suddenly pushed into the young Deka from the side. She fell with a cry, landing in front of another, as her blaster skidded across the floor. Kruger raised D-Sword Vega and fired a shot off from the mechanized gun within the dog's head hilt, destroying the Mecha-Human directly behind her. Jasmine rose as the remaining two tried to flank her on both sides. Seeing them advance, she crouched back down and swiftly kicked them both in the shins in a semi-circle motion. As they both fell, Kruger ran over with D-Sword Vega outstretched. As the two Anaroids attempted to get up, Kruger slashed them both across the chest. They fell to the ground and exploded. Doggie ran over to where Jasmine now sat with an exhausted look on her face.

"Thanks, Boss," Jasmine gasped out, trying to catch her breath as she looked up at him.

"You did well," Kruger said, offering his hand.

"I guess I can at least defend myself even if I'm not DekaYellow," Jasmine smiled as the DekaMaster pulled her up.

Kruger powered down and his familiar form appeared.

"We better get to that office where the shot came from," Kruger said. "I have a feeling Copernicus isn't all that well."

Jasmine nodded, and the two of them ran toward the curator's office.

--

Kruger and Jasmine practically burst into Copernicus' office. Upon surveying their surroundings, it was clear there were signs of a struggle. Papers were strewn everywhere, pottery was shattered on the floor. Jasmine looked into the room and let out a gasp.

"Boss, look!" she pointed.

In the corner of the room, underneath the open window, was a frail-looking gray-furred Anubian. He was slumped down onto the floor face down. A small pool of blood was seeping out from around his chest. A small pair of reading glasses lay next to him, shattered and covered in blood.

"Copernicus!" Kruger shouted. He and Jasmine ran to where the victim lay. Jasmine knelled down and turned him over, resting the Anubian's head on her knees. There was a visible gunshot wound on his chest, a sizeable red stain on his painter's smock. Copernicus' breath was coming out sporadically--he was still alive. Kruger opened his license.

"This is Chief Kruger of Earth Branch! Please send a medical team to the gallery as soon as possible. We have a gunshot victim on our hands!"

Copernicus slowly opened his eyes, as if roused by the sound of voices. He looked up to see Jasmine staring down at him, her hair slightly blowing from the wind coming in from the window opened behind them.

"Are you an angel?" The old Anubian croaked out.

Jasmine shook her head with a concerned frown. "I'm an SPD officer with Chief Kruger of the Earth Branch. You've been shot."

Copernicus looked over to see Kruger closing his license. Making eye contact, Kruger walked over and kneeled down to where Copernicus lay.

"We've called for help," Kruger said to him, reaching out and touching the arm of his long-sleeved shirt. "They'll be here shortly, please rest and conserve your strength."

The old Anubian shook his head, and slowly reached up and grabbed the arm of his uniform in what seemed like a desperate motion. "No, I feel myself slipping. I don't have much time left. I must tell you what happened. Do you have a tape recorder?"

"Yes," Jasmine said slowly. She reached into her yellow-accented uniform jacket and removed it. "But why?"

"I want you to record this conversation," Copernicus breathed out. "It will be helpful for convicting the ones I worked with, the ones that betrayed me."

Without another word, Jasmine clicked the record button on the tape recorder with her free hand.

"Copernicus, are you sure about this?" Kruger asked, looking him directly in the eyes. He could tell that he was fading quickly; already the older Anubian's eyes were starting to get a far-away look.

"Yes, of course. I...I was a middle man for what you probably have already figured out. I was sending pottery to Earth under the lie that they were Rex Gallieo's work. No one on Earth would know the difference; the painter was only famous here on Anubis. In reality, I had made them. I had always been fascinated in pottery, but never could make it as an artist."

"Well, I was approached for this job by Hiroshi Chen. He and Giles Rhodes are jewel thieves, who stake out their victims by Rhodes's list of important clients, and their wealthy friends. Chen and I had a mutual friend in a Zamaza Seijjin named Sameel that is a rare jewel collector. He knew I would be able to arrange payment to him through me, and we could use the gallery for cover."

"So, I would send my pottery work to Earth, where they would be displayed under the guise of being Galleio's work. Then Giles Rhodes and Mel Stevenson would send back some new pottery with the stolen jewels inside made by a freelance artist of theirs... I believe her name was Yuri Sarutoshi."

"Yuri..." Jasmine whispered. She looked up toward her boss. "Wasn't that the name of Halley-san's girlfriend?"

Kruger nodded in shock, trying to take everything in. The gloves and the pottery... why Jasmine's powers had not detected any thoughts on them... yes, it all made sense now. He shook his head. "Please, Jasmine, let Mr. Copernicus speak."

"Anyway, " Copernicus breathed out. "Everything began to fall apart a couple of days ago. Reportedly, Sarutoshi began to have second thoughts on the way she was contributing to Rhodes' plan and confronted him. I don't know what happened to her, Rhodes only said she was 'taken care of'. I shudder to think what that meant."

Jasmine looked a mixture of shocked and appalled. Kruger swallowed hard. He remembered that Yuri had left Halley a 'Dear John' letter, as he put it, two days earlier. At the time, he had had no clue that it would be an important part of this case.

"Then I got a call from Chen, who said he wanted to meet with me. He sounded irate. I told him I'd be in the office late this evening; I had planned to work on some new works to send to Earth for their final shipment. "

"Only when he got here he had something else in mind. He was accusing me of tipping off the Space Police. I tried to explain I had no idea what he was talking about. He insisted that it must have been me, they knew I had been in contact with you, you see. They just assumed I had given you more information than I did. I tried to explain I had nothing to do with it and expressed my concerns about you arriving here. He then said he'd take care of you.. And me. Then he pulled out a gun. But, that's enough of that. They plan on meeting Sameel on Earth for the final exchange and payment, so he said they no longer needed me. He shot me and then ransacked my office, looking for Sameel's contact number. Upon finding it, he exited my office, throwing some kind of spheres or something."

"The spheres containing the Mecha-Humans," Kruger muttered.

"I guess so. Please listen to me. Tomorrow at 3:00pm, they plan on meeting on the outskirts of Metropolis City on Earth to make the final exchange. In this location." Copernicus reached into his painter's smock and produced a piece of paper, stained with blood. With shaking hands, he handed it to Kruger. "I wrote that after I was shot. Anyway, stop them, and arrest them. Tell...my family..."

A small moan emanated from Copernicus' throat, and he laid his head down in Jasmine's lap. She reached down and felt the side of his neck with two of her gloved fingers.

"He's dead, Boss," Jasmine said solemnly. She reached up to her face and wiped her eyes.

Kruger didn't really need Jasmine to tell that Copernicus had died. He had seen death before. Already, all the light was gone from the fellow Anubian's eyes; they looked glassy. Kruger reached forward and closed his half-open eyelids the rest of the way. Ever so slowly, he gingerly picked up his head with both hands and carefully moved him off of Jasmine's legs. He then took her hand and pulled her up with a quick motion.

She was slightly shaking. Kruger sighed. He wished Jasmine wouldn't have been in the room when Copernicus died. He had hoped that maybe the paramedics would arrive before then and take him away. Maybe he wanted to protect her too much...

Kruger wrapped his right arm around Jasmine. "Are you okay?" He whispered.

Jasmine nodded. "It's awful, but not the first time I've seen someone die... Poor Copernicus-san."

Kruger nodded, understanding. He had almost forgotten that Jasmine was a competent Deka herself. Sometimes, in situations like this, Doggie again saw her as that lonely and scared sixteen-year old schoolgirl who was terrified of her own powers. She had seen her share of death on the job, often young innocent victims. Copernicus had lived a long life by the looks of it, and obviously had been involved in some shady dealings. Still, he was a victim of those he thought he could trust, and Kruger vowed vengeance for the soul that was ripped away unjustly.

Just then, the phone feature of Kruger's SPD license rang.

He quickly removed it from his uniform and flipped it open. "It's me," Kruger answered.

"Doggie," Swan said on the other end, her voice sounding strange. "How soon can you get back?"

"There's been a murder here," Kruger began. "But we'll get back as soon as possible. We've got to get some things in motion. Anyway, is something wrong, Swan? You sound... troubled."

"I don't know if it's harder to hear or harder to say," Doggie stared closely at her image on the view screen as she spoke, his brow raising in concern. Swan was almost on the verge of tears. "You might want to sit down. It's your friend..."


	4. Chapter 4

--

_AN: First of, thanks for reading this far! This will be mostly an explanatory chapter for the final arc of this story. I had a bit of fun writing this chapter, as it was fun to experiment with Doggie's relationship with Jasmine somewhat. As I mentioned earlier, she always seemed to be the closest of the rangers to him, so it was enjoyable to write that dynamic._

--

Kruger walked into the DekaBase at top speed, ignoring everything and everyone around him. One thought kept flashing into his mind over and over...

'How could all of this have happened?'

_"It happened so suddenly." Swan had said over the reception of his Master License. "I was walking out of the DekaBase to ask your friend if he had caught you before you two had left. As he was walking toward me, I heard the sound of a car engine. Out of nowhere, the vehicle came around and ran him down. The car kept going and crashed in the side of the DekaBase, and burst into flames. We cordoned off the area, and I ran to where Halley-sanlay. He was still alive, but his chest had burst open and he was bleeding profusely. One leg was broken while the other...was severed."_

_"Is...Is he still alive now?" Kruger's voice was shaking, as he could not believe what he had just been told. He had certainly expected nothing like this._

_"Yes, we transported him immediately to the Medical Wing," Swan responded. "Operation began immediately. They focused on his chest, and re-attached the leg. He's not in very stable condition..."_

_"We'll be right there. The paramedics have just gotten here and I'm cutting out. I've got to see Halley. The driver of the car..?"_

_"Dead," Swan answered, shaking her head. "It was hard to identify the body, but it appears to be that of a young woman, human... Earthling most likely__. Halley-san's been in and out of consciousness. He's been calling for you, Doggie." _

_"We're getting in the ship now, Swan. We'll be home in a couple of hours."_

Kruger shook the memory of the conversation out of his mind as he turned the corner of the hall and rushed to the medical bay. Jasmine was behind him, struggling to catch up. Her eyes and nose were slightly red, as if she had been crying. As Kruger stopped in front of the door to the medical bay, Jasmine called out to him.

"Boss, please wait! I want to see him too!" She cried out.

Kruger turned around and caught Jasmine in his arms as she tried to enter the room before them. He looked down at her, his features turning stern. '_It's time to be strong_,' Kruger told himself.

"Jasmine, no." Kruger said as soothingly as he was capable of at the moment. "Please, listen to me. You've had enough for one day."

Jasmine's face was flushed, and her clothing was covered in Copernicus' blood. She looked both shaken and shell-shocked. As he surveyed his companion, Kruger really felt she couldn't take anymore stress at the moment.

"Please, Boss," Jasmine pleaded. "I'm worried about you. You'll be all alone, and Halley-san is bound to be in horrible shape..." She paused for a minute, trying to think of the right words. "I think you need..."

"Don't worry about me," Kruger said softy. He then suddenly pulled Jasmine close and embraced her. The ESPer seemed surprised, but did not pull away.

"There, that should get me through it," Kruger said after a few brief seconds, releasing her. "I know you'll be here when I come out. Please, go get cleaned up. Get a shower, relax. We're still going to catch the bastards responsible for this come this afternoon, and I want you by my side then."

Jasmine backed away from him, and didn't say anything further on the subject. As Kruger looked into the beautiful brown eyes, he could tell she understood, or was at least attempting to. Jasmine nodded and turned down the hall without another word.

Kruger's chest ached as he watched her disappear around the corridor, and finally at the sound of her footsteps fading in the distance. To keep Jasmine with him during this would have been selfish, he felt. If Halley died, he didn't want her to have to endure seeing it. Not again. This was something he had to do alone.

Kruger sighed, pushing open the door to the medical bay. The light was somewhat brighter within, and he had to adjust his eyes. Upon a quick survey of the room as he entered, he immediately noticed Swan was sitting in the waiting area, talking to the doctor. They both looked up at his entrance.

"Doggie," She said, rising from her seat. "You're here."

Kruger nodded. He turned to the doctor.

"How is he?"

"Quite frankly, not well," The doctor responded, shaking his balding head. "His chest received damage that would've killed most on impact. Most of his ribs were broken, and one scraped his heart. Also, there was a small fracture at the bottom of his spine."

Kruger cringed. "Can I see him?" He asked.

"Normally I would advise against it," The doctor said. "But the victim has been calling for you in the time that he's been conscious, and I feel I cannot deny his request."

"Doggie, do you want me to come with you?" Swan asked.

"No," Kruger said. He knew that just like Jasmine, he wanted to protect Swan. The fact that she had been on site when Halley was hit was overwhelming-- what if she would've been injured, or worse? Just the thought of it almost made him feel a mixture of both tense and faint in spite of himself. He composed himself, making eye-contact with her.

"I want you to check on Jasmine. I sent her to get cleaned up. Could you see if she's doing okay?"

Swan smiled. Kruger could not help but feel a bit surprised at how much braver she made him feel with that re-assuring smile of hers. "Of course, Doggie. If you need us, please call."

She reached up and tapped Kruger's shoulder, then turned and left. Kruger watched her go, a similar feeling invoking in him as when he had watched Jasmine leave earlier. He shook his head... it had to be this way. Thus resolved, he then turned to the doctor.

"This way please," The Doctor said, motioning to the next room.

--

Kruger looked down at the Anubian in the hospital bed, and barley recognized him. Halley was covered in bandages; parts of his fur still had dried blood in it. He was hooked up to several machines, one of them making a shrill beeping noise every half a minute or so. The patient seemed to be sleeping; his eyes were closed tightly. His bandaged chest rose up and down every so often, as if straining to breathe. How could this happen to Halley? The person who was so strong... so incredibly full of life and spirit?

"I'll leave you two be," The doctor said, turning to leave the room.

"Thank you," Kruger said, without even turning to him. Truthfully, he had forgotten the doctor was in the room the moment he saw Halley's condition laid out on the hospital bed before him.

The door behind him slid shut with a swishing sound.

Kruger felt tears forming in his eyes, and desperately tried to blink them away. He walked over to and then carefully sat down in a chair that was to the right of Halley's bedside. It was made of metal and was rather uncomfortable, but he did his best to ignore it. After all, it was not what mattered right now. Doggie reached over and took his old friend's hand, which had lay by his side, on the outside the pale white bed sheets.

"Halley, I'm sorry." Kruger whispered. "I should've been here, should've stopped it."

"Krug," Came a weak reply. "You're here."

"Halley?!," Kruger looked up and blinked.

"I was playing possum...didn't want to talk to the doctor no more," Halley said in a strained voice. "Don't blame yourself...you couldn't have known."

"I should've realized they'd try something.." Kruger repeated.

"Krug, it was Yuri. I recognized her car. I can't...I can't believe she'd try to kill me."

"Halley, I'm not sure she really did. We think they set her up..."

"Then she's--"

"Dead." Kruger responded, shaking his head. "The woman in the car was dead. For some reason, I'm willing to bet she was already dead in the car. I think that--"

Kruger grew silent. He shouldn't be worrying Halley with this kind of detail. Not when he was...

"Damn," Halley said slowly. "She was somethin' else," There was something akin to sadness in his voice. "Where's Marika-chan?"

Kruger looked down abruptly, somewhat taken aback at the suddenness of the question. "She wanted to be here, but I..."

"You wanted to protect her," Halley said. "That's just like ya, Krug."

"You mad?"

"Nah," Halley sighed. "I just wanted to see her one last time."

"Fang, don't say that."

"Heh, you haven't called me by my first name since we were little. Now I know I'm dyin'."

"Halley..."

"Doggie, I'm not afraid...of death. Maybe I'd see Yuri again, if she was innocent, or maybe your folks and mine. Never met my dad... That should be fun."

Kruger grew silent. The last thing he wanted to think about right now was how not only Halley's mother, but how his own parents had died. Too many bad memories were being brought out from this experience, especially that of his own father on his death bed, the explosion of the government building that had caused... Kruger pushed it out of his mind. The past should not interfere with this present moment...

"Halley, please, fight." Kruger ordered in a somber tone. "You will see Marika again. You'll get up and walk to her..."

"Heh, if I do, I certainly won't be walking," Halley interrupted in a gravely voice. "The docs say if I survive, I'll probably never walk again. When I got hit, the first thing I saw after I hit the ground was my own foot. Surprise, it was detached from my own body...and I couldn't feel it. They said I should've died on impact, but not us Anubians. We have a tendency to linger."

"Halley, I promise you that we'll bring those who caused this to justice. " Kruger vowed. "I'll make them pay for what they've done."

"Now that I believe." Halley gingerly smiled, and for the first time, Kruger saw his recognizable tooth on the right side of his mouth. His mother had the foresight to name him 'Fang' based on that physical attribute.

There was the swishing sound of the door to the medical bay, as the doctor reentered into the room. Kruger looked up at him.

"Excuse me, but I think it's time that my patient got some rest," He said. He prepared a hypodermic needle. "I'm going to give him a sedative so he'll sleep more soundly."

Kruger nodded and stood up from the chair, his eyes remaining on the face of his friend.

"See you later, Halley. That's a promise."

"Hey, I stayed on this planet waiting for you to get back," Halley laughed weakly. "I might not wait for you again."

Kruger shook his head and sighed as he walked to the door.

"Hey, Krug!" Halley called out suddenly.

"Yeah?" Kruger responded.

"Take care of Marika-chan," Halley said. "Tell her everything will be okay."

Kruger nodded and swiftly left the room, making sure that the door closed behind him.

--

Kruger walked down the corridor, head down, rather watching his own boots as they moved in his vision as he walked. His destination was Jasmine's room... they'd have to prepare soon, he knew. As he turned the corner and entered the hallway that led to her door, he heard footsteps... the kind that only could be made from a woman's high-heel boots. He could recognize this particular pair, and the sound they would produce, anywhere. Looking up, he was not surprised to see Swan was walking down the hall toward him.

"How is she?" Kruger asked her, referring to Jasmine.

"She's holding in there," Swan said. "I basically only talked to her through the door, as I think she was in the bath. Jasmine is tough-- she's always been.. The question is, are you okay, Doggie?"

"Yeah, don't worry about me," Kruger said, looking away from her.

At this, Swan placed her hand on her chin, as if she was deep in thought.

"About the woman," Kruger said suddenly as he walked past her, before she could say anything more on the subject. He turned back to face her once again. "Swan, was she dead before or after the car crashed?"

"I would say before," Swan answered, rather straightening her white lab coat. "Her body seemed to have tell-tale signs of an earlier death. The explosion probably helped mask the time she died, but couldn't erase it completely. There were marks on her neck--I don't know if they were caused from the crash or not yet. There was also some evidence of some kind of machinery hooked up to the steering systems of the car."

"So what do you think?" Kruger asked. "Foul play?"

"I believe so," She said. "I think the car might've been controlled remotely based on the machine parts found in the car."

"Get those together, put them in an evidence bag," Kruger instructed, placing his hand on the door to Jasmine's room. "We'll confront them about this when we bring them in for questioning."

"Of course, I'll get right on it," Swan nodded. She turned away and started walking down the hall.

"Doggie?" She called back, stopping.

"Yeah?" Kruger looked back at her once more, his eyes focused on her feathery layered hair of the back of her head.

"Let it out, Doggie. Don't keep it inside. Don't hide from it behind the case. This has become quite a personal case, use that. Follow Ban's example--use that passion to finish this."

Before Kruger could say anything, Swan briskly walked away. Kruger shook his head, and opened Jasmine's door.

--

Kruger slowly walked into the bedroom of Jasmine's quarters. It was small, but had a rather cozy feeling to it. Not surprisingly, her bed had yellow sheets, with matching pillow cases. A new, clean yellow and black uniform jacket was sitting on top of it. Jasmine didn't seem to be around, however.

"Jasmine, are you in here?" Kruger called out. He was surprised how worn his own voice had sounded just then.

"Just a minute, Boss" Jasmine's voice called out from a small room just adjacent to the bedroom-- her private bath. "I'm just finishing drying my hair."

"Take your time," Kruger said.

He sat down on the bed and looked around the room. His eyes came to rest on the dresser, where there sat a photograph of Jasmine and Umeko from one of their shopping trips. He realized just then that Jasmine had no pictures of her family, like most young women would. Of course not. Her family practically disowned her when they learned of her powers. They seemed more than willing to 'unload', as they put it, their daughter on to him to train her as a DekaRanger. That day always somewhat haunted him; to see parents act so cold toward their own child was awful to him.

Kruger began thinking of Halley's condition again, he couldn't help it. Someone had intentionally tried to end his life, who knows yet if they have succeeded. When young, his and Halley's families were destroyed, all because a mad bomber had to go and destroy the government building in which they all worked. Halley's mother (Halley's father had been killed in a war before he was born) and Kruger's mother had both died instantly in the explosion. Kruger's father had survived initially and was hospitalized, where he eventually died. He had regained consciousness only once, and when told his wife was dead he never spoke again.

Ironically enough, Halley had been with his mother that day in that office. As per his occasional habit, he had feigned sickness to take a day off from the academy. After the bombing, rescue workers found him trapped inside, pinned under his mother. She had protected him from the majority of the falling debris, sacrificing her life in the process. Halley himself remembered nothing of the event later after he woke up in the hospital. His mother was not the only loss from that day. His left eye had been stuck by glass from the shattered windows, and it was damaged beyond normal repair.

Meanwhile, the event was all over the news, as over a thousand people had been killed in the bombing. It had been an outsider of Planet Anubis responsible, so the Space Police had been assigned the case. When the culprit was found and arrested, the judgment and deletion of the criminal had been reported on every news station.

_'I felt I had a new purpose in life. I always admired the Space Police. I think even at a young age I was interested in being one. Yet, it was in that moment I knew. I could feel it in every fiber of my being. I would be a Space Policeman... A Deka. I would prevent families from being destroyed by the callous actions of others... and bring the ones that did so to justice. As soon I was of age, I went to study swordsmanship, and then took the entrance exam for the Space Police's training facility... Halley encouraged me, told me to live out my dream...'_

Kruger felt his eyes begin to burn. Halley had been so strong then too, despite his young age. They had both been forced into new roles due to the events of that day-- they were children that were forced to become men. He could not help but wonder... would Halley fight for his life this time, or give up?

The door to her bathroom opened and Jasmine walked into the room... although Doggie was far too deep in his own thoughts to notice her entrance.

"Boss, thanks for waiting," Jasmine was wearing her uniform's skirt and a white sleeveless turtleneck shirt... a standard issue under her Space Police uniform. Her face had cleared up of the redness, her voice back to it's normal smoothness. "I'm sorry, I..."

Kruger had felt himself slipping at that moment. He brought his hands up to his head, and laid face down on the bed, his body still in a half-sitting position. He began to feel warm moisture going down the sides of his face... no matter how much he tried to fight it.

"Boss!" He heard Jasmine cry.

In an instant, Kruger felt Jasmine sit on the bed next to him, in front of where his face now lay. Suddenly, she picked his face up in her arms, and rested Kruger's head across her knees. Then, he felt her slender bare arms wrapped around his head, the side of her face on his forehead and her deep dark brown hair on his face. Halley had been right once again, her hair did smell of lavender.

"Shhh," Jasmine said softly. "Everything's going to be alright."

"I... should've stopped it... I should've been there," Kruger managed to choke out.

"You couldn't have known,' Jasmine whispered. "Don't blame yourself. "

"If only I had been older." Kruger whimpered.

Of course, he knew Jasmine would not know what to make of this comment... he did not expect her to. Past and present were all intermingling now; it was difficult for Kruger to keep them straight. But it did not matter. Jasmine softly stroked the fur on his face, and held him as the emotions came pouring out.

"I'm... sorry," Kruger said at last, as he was attempting to regain his composure.

Jasmine shook her head solemnly. "Don't worry about it. With everything you've been through, I would've broken down long before."

Kruger put his hand on Jasmine's shoulder to lift himself up. He contemplated her words. 'Everything he's been through?' It seemed to carry more meaning, more than just what was happening currently with Halley.

He looked up into Jasmine's eyes and could see that she truly understood everything. She must have caught some glimpses of his confused thoughts about his past when she held on to him. At least, he believed she must have. After all, her skin must have touched his...

"Jasmine, I..."

Just then, the phone feature of Kruger's license began to ring. He reached inside his jacket, finding nothing. He looked around quickly before catching sight of it. It had fallen out of his uniform and was sitting on the bed. Kruger picked it up and answered it.

"Yeah?"

"I've got everything ready," Swan said. She looked at Kruger, squinting slightly, concern flashing across her delicate face. "Doggie, are you okay?"

"Yeah," Kruger smiled. He looked over at Jasmine, who had gotten up, turned away and was putting on her jacket. He looked back to Swan on the monitor in his license. "You were right Swan, as usual. Thank you."

Swan smiled. "Just do your best, Doggie. That's all anyone can ask, given the circumstances."

"Of course," Kruger nodded. "We'll be heading out soon. There's still something left we've got to do."

"Go get them, Jigoku no Banken," Swan smiled.


	5. Chapter 5

--

_AN: The final chapter! This one was rather long, but I just couldn't force myself to split it up into two chapters! Enjoy the conclusion!_

--

Kruger sat peering out of the windshield of the Machine Doberman, parked behind a cover of dense foliage. According to Copernicus' hand-written note, this was the location the last exchange was supposed to occur. If they had any hope of catching them in the act, it would be now. They would have to worry about the other charges once the suspects were in custody. Several other units were positioned on either side of the clearing, out of sight. Yes, there would be no way they would not be caught...if the perpetrators showed up that is.

"Hopefully they haven't called it off," Kruger whispered, turning toward the passenger's seat of his vehicle.

Next to him, Jasmine nodded with a determined look on her fair face.

Kruger's sensitive ears then caught the sound of tires traveling over the dirt road far off to the left of where they were hidden. Suddenly, a white Lexus pulled into the clearing. Mel Stevenson was at the driver's wheel; Hiroshi Chen was sitting next to her. The back seat's windows were tinted, but Kruger could make out a figure back there. Probably it was Rhodes.

A black van came in from the other road, and parked parallel to the vehicle.

"All Units," Kruger called into his license. "Move once the exchange has occurred. Secure and detain the black van and its occupants. I will block off the white Lexus and detain its passengers."

He turned back to Jasmine.

"Ready?" Kruger asked.

Jasmine nodded yet again. "This one's for Halley-san, Yuri and Copernicus-san."

Kruger watched as Stevenson and Chen got out of the car. The two of them walked toward the black van, which opened up its side door. A Zamaza-Seijjin stepped out, carrying a black leather briefcase. Chen turned and walked back to the trunk of the Lexus and pulled out a box. He then carefully walked over to the van with it. All the while, the figure in the back of the Lexus never moved.

"Look at that," Jasmine whispered. "Rhodes isn't lifting a finger to help in the final trade."

"He's probably lived off of ordering others to do his dirty work. Remember, he had Chen take care of Copernicus rather than dealing with him directly." Kruger answered.

"But what about Yuri?" Jasmine asked.

"That I don't have an answer for." Kruger responded. "But since we've got a team at his villa now, I'm sure they'll find some evidence there that will link him to her death and the attack on Halley."

With that, Kruger turned back to look at the exchange. The Zamaza-Sejiin walked over to Chen and opened his case. Kruger lifted himself up in his seat to get a better look. The contents were green--obviously money. Chen in turn opened up his case to review a row of pots. The two closed their cases and exchanged objects, and Stevenson and Chen walked back toward the Lexus.

"Move!" Kruger barked into his license.

Kruger turned on his siren in the Machine Doberman, breaking the still quiet that had enveloped the entire area. All heads whipped around within the clearing. Stevenson and Chen ran back to their car as fast as their legs could carry them, as two SPD vehicles surrounded the black van of their partners-in-crime. SPD officers in black uniforms filed out of their modes of transportation and began to arrest the van's occupants.

Meanwhile, Kruger started the ignition and pulled out from behind the shrubbery that had hidden them from view. Stevenson was busy trying to get into the Lexus, and stopped short as the SPD vehicle was suddenly blocking the only path their vehicle had left to take. Kruger rolled down the windows.

"FREEZE, SPD!!" Doggie yelled, pointing his blaster in their direction.

Stevenson and Chen both raised their hands. However, the back seat window lowered and a shot rang out. Kruger and Jasmine both ducked under the windows of their vehicle.

"Pull out, now!" The voice from the back seat yelled at Stevenson.

"And go where?!" She shrieked. "You idiot!!"

"I'd listen to the lady," Kruger barked back.

"Shut up you flea-bitten pup!" Rhodes yelled out the window.

"I wouldn't give us an excuse to shoot," Jasmine yelled back, shouldering her blaster and shaking her head to get her long hair out of her face.

Rhodes raised the gun again... and suddenly a shot rang out. The gun flew out of the Lexus and into the air. Rhodes' mouth opened in shock. Kruger's gun was still smoking; with incredible aim he had shot the gun itself. He and Jasmine burst out of the Machine Doberman. Rhodes, meanwhile, fled the Lexus and broke into a run towards the forest that surrounded the clearing.

"Jasmine, take these!" Kruger shouted. He tossed handcuffs in her direction. "I'll handle this guy."

"Boss, wait!" Jasmine shouted. Stevenson walked up to the yellow uniformed DekaRanger.

"Please," She said.

Jasmine slapped the cuffs on her wrists and walked over and did the same to Chen. As she was securing them, several other SPD officers ran to where they were.

"Take them back to the car." Jasmine shouted. "I'm going after Boss."

But she did not need to. Kruger had Rhodes on the ground by the time she caught up with them a short distance away. When he saw Jasmine, Doggie roughly lifted the man to his feet.

"Thought you'd get away with it?" Kruger asked, his voice fierce.

"I'm not saying anything," Rhodes responded. "I'm a lawyer, I know my rights. You'll have a hard time with me."

"We shall see," Kruger said. "We've already got you on assault of an officer."

"If you can call an effing dog an officer," Rhodes spat back.

Kruger looked back at Jasmine. He had never seen that quite that look on Jasmine's face before...

She was angry... No, angry would not be the right word to describe it. She was seething.

"Be quiet and come along," Jasmine said sharply.

Kruger nodded. "You have the right to remain silent..."

--

"We have you dead to rights!" Kruger yelled.

They had been in the interrogation room for an hour. Rhodes kept saying the same story--he was a lawyer, he knew his rights, they could be in major violation of this law, and so on and so forth. The interrogation quickly became a shouting match between Kruger and Rhodes. Chen was sweating profusely. Stevenson looked very bored, although nervous. Jasmine sat with her head leaning on the side of her gloved hand.

"You cannot prove anything," Rhodes went on. "But you've made a major error in your arrest that can release us right now. This is the Special Police, or the Space Police. We are all three earthlings--none of us are aliens or 'Seijiin' as you like to call them. You have no jurisdiction."

"Fool!" Kruger barked angrily.

"About that," Jasmine began. "The fact that this incident involves Planet Anubis makes it the SPD's business." Jasmine got up from her chair and removed from her uniform two slips of paper. She deftly placed the documents on the table in front of them. "Here is a notice from the Metropolitan police, giving us full breach in this case. This one here is from the main Branch of the SPD--signed and initialed by the Supreme Chief, Numa-O."

"None of these look like a warrant," Rhodes sneered.

"Well, aren't we meticulous at our job?" Jasmine smiled as Kruger reached into his uniform and pulled out another document. He handed it to her, and she placed it on the table with the other two. "Here is the warrant we picked up, giving us permission to basically spy on you, go through your trash, whatever we need." She looked at Stevenson. "Isn't it _cute_?"

Stevenson rolled her eyes, but couldn't help but smile sardonically at the fact that her own words were being used against her.

"Oh, come of it, Rhodes." She shrugged. "I'll let you two know what's going on. You've come this far."

Chen looked absolutely terrified. It almost looked like his face would implode with the way he sucked in his plump cheeks. Rhodes was indignant, his face gaining some red color.

"Shut your trap, Mel!"

"Or what?" She asked, becoming indignant herself. Her eyebrows narrowed. "Do you think these guys are stupid? Do you think they have no idea what we've been up to, despite the fact they have the pots, have cracked them open and looked inside? You're delusional, Rhodie."

"I know how to play the game," Rhodes yelled. He then pointed in her direction in an almost accusatory manner. "Unlike you, you bitch!"

"ENOUGH!" Kruger yelled.

"Anyways you guys, all we've done is transport stolen jewels." She sighed. "I'm not happy we've been caught, but we have. No use whining... let's face the music."

"You really are a fool!" Chen cried.

"Call it what you want," Stevenson responded, turning her head away from him. "I'm looking at a plea bargain and the mercy of the court."

"You can do that because you might not have been involved in the murders," Kruger pointed out. "Chen and Rhodes won't be so lucky."

"Murders?" Stevenson sounded fairly terrified. She composed herself and tugged the bottom of her red suit uniform. "What are you talking about?"

Jasmine stood up from her chair and looked at her boss with confusion. Kruger pulled her aside and they whispered between each other in hushed voices.

"What do you think, Boss?"

"Looks like she really doesn't know."

"You think?"

"Look how terrified she is at the thought of murder. She's surprised; her eyes are looking between the two, searching for answers. No clue at all..."

"I see, that certainly rules her out as the murderer of Yuri Sarutoshi."

Jasmine and Kruger nodded to each other, then returned back to the three sitting at the table.

"We have additional charges to present to you. As I know law dictates you know what you're being charged with." Kruger eyed Rhodes when he said this remark. "Melanie Stevenson is being charged with aiding and abetting a felony, as well as grand theft larceny. These charges can be diminished with plea bargaining."

"Rhodes is no longer my lawyer," She snapped. "I will go with the plea bargain."

"MEL!" Rhodes was furious.

"Hiroshi Chen, you are charged with the aforementioned crimes, as well as two additional ones--Attempted murder of two Space Police officers, as well as the murder of Rover Copernicus."

"Copernicus is dead?!" Stevenson gasped.

"Shut up, Mel!" Rhodes instructed.

"Make me!" She shot back.

"I... I won't say any more," Chen stammered.

"Jasmine, the tape please."

Jasmine removed a tape recorder from her jacket and pressed play. Copernicus's whole confession was played in front of the three. Kruger looked at Jasmine's face during it. She looked rather somber. In a way, it was rather hard for him to listen to it again as well. During the playback, Chen's face drained of all color, rather looking as white as a sheet.

"What do you have to say now, Chen?" Kruger asked.

"A... all right, I confess. I killed Copernicus. I thought he had ratted us out. But I guess he hadn't. But that's why I killed him. I thought maybe I could take you guys out with those spheres I had bought months ago to aid us in out jewel thefts--"

"Just shut up, Chen!" Rhodes yelled.

"It's no good, Rhodes, they've got us." Chen stammered out, removing a handkerchief from his breast pocket and wiping his sweaty forehead.

"Impossible!" Rhodes shook his head.

"What about Yuri?!" Stevenson was becoming irate. "I thought she broke up with her boyfriend and left for the Bermudas based on the money we were paying her. What did you do with her, Rhodes?"

"I said SHUT UP!!"

Rhodes raised from the chair and raised his hand in an attempt to silence Stevenson physically. She gasped, but Kruger intercepted him and threw him back in the chair.

"Enough!" Kruger yelled. "You will not hurt anyone else!"

"Touch me again, you filthy mongrel..." Rhodes spat out. "And I'll have your badge. You can't prove a damn thing."

The door to the interrogation room suddenly opened, as Swan entered the room. She confidently walked up to the end of the table and handed Jasmine two evidence bags. Kruger walked over to her, and she handed him a manila folder. The three then had a quick impromptu conference.

"Is this it?" Kruger asked in a hushed tone, pointing toward one of the evidence bags in Jasmine's hands.

"Uh hmm." Swan nodded. "Notice this controller." She touched the smaller bag. It could've easily happened the way we discussed earlier, using this. I've written up some notes on my theory. I think they'll be quite helpful to you."

"Where did they find it?" Jasmine asked, turning the second bag over slightly as she was inspecting the object inside.

"They found it in the trash, outside the villa."

Kruger was going through some papers from the folder Swan had handed him earlier. "Thanks, Swan, we'll take it from here."

"No problem, Doggie. Good luck."

Swan smiled briefly and then quickly exited the room, closing the door behind her. Kruger and Jasmine both turned back around and eyed Rhodes specifically.

"Your question about Yuri Sarutoshi," Kruger began. "Her car ran down her boyfriend, Fang Halley, severely injuring him--almost to the point of death. Her body was found in her car, charred almost beyond recognition."

"Oh my god." Stevenson gasped out, a hand shooting up to her mouth. She rather fell back in her chair.

"But, we have evidence she was murdered... by you, Rhodes. Giles Rhodes, in addition to the aforementioned crimes, along with resisting arrest, assault on an officer and conspiracy to murder Rover Copernicus, you are also charged with the Murder of Yuri Sarutoshi and the attempted murder of Fang Halley." Kruger said.

"Hah," Rhodes reiterated. "You can't prove any of it."

"This was found at the crime scene." Jasmine placed a bag on the table, and attempted to pierce Rhodes with her striking eyes. "This machinery of mysterious origin. It was attached to the steering components of the vehicle. It seems to have had a remote function, and some kind of explosive."

"And this," Kruger took a second bag from Jasmine and placed on the table. "This remote, found at your villa, outside in the trash. Notice if you press this button," Kruger pressed it through the bag. "This light lights up on the machinery. Don't jump, Mr. Rhodes, the explosive component has been removed."

"It didn't detonate all the way," Jasmine explained, looking down at the mechanical remains on the table. "Which is why we found its remains. An error, a helpful one for us at that."

"I'm not saying anything." Rhodes reiterated, crossing his arms. Chen was shaking heavily, and Stevenson looked at her former lawyer with revulsion. The room fell into silence. It was broken a moment later, as a low growl emanated from Kruger's throat, causing the lawyer to eye him.

"Anyway, you're only pissed because Anubians were killed," Rhodes sneered. "The big dogs protecting their own. Your entire race is pathetic! I bet like all dogs you probably sniff each other's--"

"You bastard!" Kruger snarled. He rushed toward where the lawyer sat and picked Rhodes up by the collar of his dress shirt, raising him from his chair. "You're not only pompous, but bigoted as well! You have no idea of the suffering you've caused, the lives you've taken away..."

Kruger's right hand dropped Rhodes's collar and balled up into a fist. As Kruger brought his arm back, Jasmine ran toward them and grabbed his fist with both hands.

"Boss, don't!" Jasmine cried from behind him. "He's not worth it!"

"Do it," Rhodes sneered. "Your badge will be taken away. Especially when I represent myself and I'm found innocent."

"Ignore him, Boss," Jasmine pleaded. "He's goading you."

"Stop it, Rhodes!" Stevenson cried, standing up from her chair and slamming both palms down on the table in front of her.

Rhodes laughed, and Kruger let go of his collar with his other hand. As he backed away, Jasmine now stood between her boss and the lawyer.

"Heh, just like a dog to obey its master," Rhodes laughed. "Thanks for calling down the hound." He smirked.

Looking back at it, Kruger still can't believe how fast it happened. The first thing he remembered as he turned back to face the lawyer was seeing the back of Jasmine's now bare hand in front of his own face. With lightening fast speed, it was brought down across Rhodes's face. The slap sound was extremely loud, and caused a stillness in the room. All mouths fell open in absolute shock. Rhodes fell out of his chair and onto the ground, swearing profusely. Jasmine brought her hand back, an angry look on her face.

"How... dare you!!" Rhodes gasped out.

"Just like you deserve, you big baby." Stevenson said. She looked at Jasmine. "Nice one, sweetie."

Jasmine didn't answer her, her face now looked devoid of any emotion. She slowly walked to where Rhodes was laying.

"Stand up," She said quietly.

"I'll have your ba--"

"STAND UP, YOU POMPUS JERK!" Jasmine shrieked. She stooped to the ground and grabbed Rhodes' collar. "Sit down, shut up and listen to your charges. You don't have to say anything. My new evidence was all I needed."

Kruger looked at Jasmine in shock. He looked down at Rhodes. The lawyer was shaking slightly, but looked Jasmine in the eyes.

"New evidence?"

She practically threw Rhodes back up into the chair. Turning around to Kruger, Jasmine locked eye contact with him.

"He did it," She said softly. "It all happened as we guessed." She put back on her glove, crossed her arms and shivered.

"What.. the hell are you talking about?" Rhodes said as he tried to compose himself.

Jasmine turned back to him and held up her now gloved left hand. "I am an ESPer. When I touched you, I could read your thoughts. Of course you'd be thinking about it, since we're sitting here interrogating you about the very same event."

"I don't believe you," Rhodes said, slowly repositioning himself in his chair. "You're trying to throw me off... either that, or you're a lunatic."

"You're obnoxious, rude, pompous, racist and a murderer." Jasmine said calmly, fixing her hair. "I win the name-calling competition. Fine, we'll continue do this your way for now. Boss, shall we continue?"

Miss Stevenson laughed.

"Uh... yeah." Kruger looked back at the papers Swan had given him. "We've pieced together a time frame with phone records. Two days ago, Yuri Sarutoshi was having second-thoughts about her role in the operation. You said you'd meet her and discuss it."

"Here is an image of her neck," Jasmine began, removing a photograph from her jacket and placing it down on the table. "Don't worry, Stevenson-san, it's just a close-up of bruises, it's not graphic." Jasmine said as she noticed her wincing. She pointed down to the photograph. "See these marks here? They are a clear sign of strangulation."

"You strangled her and set her up in her car, which she left at your house." Kruger continued. "She had let slip probably that Halley had talked to us. So you devised a plan to murder him, frame Yuri for the murder and make her death look accidental or suicide."

"But this," Jasmine held up the controller. "Gave you away."

"It's--it's all circumstantial." Rhodes stammered.

"I doubt the jury will see it that way." Jasmine said. "This evidence, along with what you were caught doing and the fact that you resisted arrest on scene... on top of what I saw... it's all pretty convincing."

"I'm a good lawyer," Rhodes said. "I've gotten many a client out just as much, if not more."

"Then, good luck Mr. Rhodes." Jasmine said sardonically. "Of course, we'll testify against you. That will be quite fun to relive this conversation in front of a judge and twelve people, won't it?"

Three SPD officers entered the room.

"We're done here," Jasmine stated. "Could you please take these three people away?"

One of the officers nodded, and all three of them approached the perpetrators and took the arm of one of the three.

"You will now be removed to the custody of the Metropolitan Police, then to the court-house, where your court-date will be set." Kruger said.

The three were filed out one by one. As Rhodes was taken past Jasmine, he cringed. He refused to look at Kruger. Chen looked fairly lost in his own thoughts to notice either of them. Last out was the officer with Stevenson.

"I'm sorry," She said. "It seems that I didn't know entirely what was going on. I'll also testify against Rhodes. For Yuri."

Kruger nodded.

"It could've been you he killed," Jasmine said pointedly.

She nodded, and seemed to shiver. "I know."

--

Several weeks had passed. Finally, things had gotten back to normal. The huge girth of cases had slowed down, giving everyone at DekaBase some well-deserved rest. Kruger smiled at his desk, as he finished initialing the last piece of paperwork from that hectic week. It felt good to have the whole team back together again. He honestly hoped they'd never have to be spread that thin ever again.

"Boss," Jasmine called, coming into the room. "Halley-san's leaving today, don't you remember? Don't you want to say good-bye?"

"Of course," Kruger smiled, getting up from his desk.

Jasmine took his arm and led him down the hall. Kruger rather enjoyed the quiet stroll. The halls almost seemed empty now, the atmosphere much calmer.

Upon arriving in the DekaBase's main lobby, he could see the back of Umeko's pink and black uniform facing him as she was standing in front of a wheelchair.

"Gosh, you are so cute," Halley said, staring up at the pink-uniformed Deka. "Why don't you stoop down and let me get a better look at your face? Of course, I love the view from down here."

"Oh, Halley-san!" Umeko giggled. "You are incorrigible!"

"Nonsense," Tetsu observed, as he was standing off to the side with Sen, Hoji and Swan.

"He's a shameless flirt," Swan laughed.

"Well, he is Boss's friend after all." Sen said.

"What does that mean?" Hoji asked, confusion written on his features.

Sen just shrugged. "That he'd be his polar opposite of course. Like you and Ban for instance."

Hoji made a guttural sound and turned away from Sen, as a particularly annoyed expression flashed across his face.

"All right, all of you," Kruger barked as he and Jasmine fully entered the room. "Let me say good-bye to my old pal."

Halley looked up at the voice, but looked past Kruger. "Marika!" He beamed. "There you are! I've really, really missed you!"

Kruger smiled. "What am I, Hal? Chopped liver?"

Halley smiled back weakly, his trademark tooth visible.

"Take care, Halley-san." Swan said as she approached the wheelchair and leaned forward and patted his arm. With that, she left the room, followed by Umeko, Tetsu, Sen and Hoji. Kruger took notice as Umeko passed by Jasmine-- both young women smiled and nodded back at each other.

"Heading back to Anubis?" Kruger asked after he and Jasmine were left alone with the wheelchair-bound Halley.

"Yeah, they think I can get better physical therapy there, since Anubians know how to handle Anubians." He laughed. "Doc there says she thinks I'll be able to walk again, if given the right treatment. I hope it's fun."

Kruger rolled his eyes. "Take care, Fang."

"I will. I'd tell you the same thing, but I know that Marika-chan and Swan-san will take good care of you. " He grinned. "With them on either side of you, who could lose? I'm quite jealous."

"Halley-san, that's so nice of you to say." Jasmine almost blushed. "I hope you get better."

"I will," Halley said. "I'm not giving up this fight. I promised someone I'd walk up to you one day."

Halley wheeled himself over and took Jasmine's hand. "Until we meet again, my friend."

"It will be soon," Jasmine smiled, warmly placing her free gloved hand overtop Halley's bare violet-furred one.

Halley let go of Jasmine's hand and looked back at Kruger. "I guess I don't have to tell you to take good care of Marika-chan."

Kruger shook his head and smiled. "Have a safe voyage."

Halley smiled back, gave a salute, and turned and wheeled out of the lobby toward the exit of the DekaBase. The door to the building opened with a swishing sound as he slowly eased himself out. The sun was setting outside, and it's light cast an orange glow inside of DekaBase.

"I get the sense," Jasmine said to Kruger as she watched Halley leave. "...that Halley-san will be all right."

"I know he will be," Kruger nodded, crossing his arms. "He is Fang Halley, after all. In all the years I've known him, nothing has stood in his way."

For a long time, they stared out of the front door of the DekaBase, rather trying to get used to the fact that Halley had finally departed. Kruger knew that he's miss him, but also knew it was time his friend got on with his life. He was bravely fighting to overcome the new adversity that had been forced onto him... just like he has all those years ago back on Anubis. Kruger felt a certain pride welling up within him at the thought.

Suddenly, a familiar Anubian in a wheelchair glided past the front door of the DekaBase. Kruger's mouth dropped open in surprise as Jasmine looked first toward the door, then back to her boss.

"Hey, look guys!" Halley shouted back at them. "I'm popping wheelies!!"

Jasmine laughed and Kruger shook his head and placed his hands on his hips.

"So, Boss...same old Halley?" Jasmine asked, looking Kruger in the eyes.

"Yup, definitely," Kruger chuckled.

**-Fin**


End file.
